For publishers looking to up their optimization, Google’s Adsense auto ads will give them something to get excited over.
Google’s Adsense Auto Ads were launched in a limited beta last September and are now available for everyone. Adsense Auto Ads will use machine learning to make monetization and placement decisions on behalf of publishers. The developers have stated that the only thing publishers have to do is place one piece of code to all of their pages and Google will analyze those pages for performance for them and find the best ad placement spots based on the data.
These powerful optimization opportunities only scratch the surface of what Auto Ads can give publishers. Another major benefit of the automated ads ties into revenue growth. Because Adsense automatically scans for the best available ad placement spots and places new ads there, publishers could see their revenue consistently increase.
Adsense auto ads come with easy to use tools and a nifty toggle feature. After placing the initial code, the new Adsense features will be easy to toggle on and off. There will be no need to change the code again.
To get started with Auto Ads, a user has to sign into their Adsense account, select the formats they’d like to show on their pages (includes in-page and overly vignette and anchor ads), copy the code, and “paste the ad code between the < head > and </ head > tags of each page where you want to show Auto ads.” The developers have stated that it will only take 10-20 minutes for ads to start appearing on pages.
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The developers also affirmed that Auto ads will take into account existing Google ads on pages. With that, there wouldn't be a need to remove manually placed ads.
The success of Adsense Auto Ads will ultimately depend on how well the system will leverage it’s machine learning technology. This launch not only signifies a major step forward for machine learning. It also lends itself to a debate over whether or not programmatic advertising is truly reliable.
In the past, programmatic advertising has been rife with controversy. Publishers have claimed that inconsistent measurements and metrics and ad fraud have plagued these systems. Unfortunately, user responses during the Auto Ads beta test were less than positive with some users claiming that the ads can end up overcrowding pages.
If the machine learning aspects of this new program prove themselves to be successful in the full rollout, publishers won’t have to worry about manually analyzing which ad spots will perform best or stress about a programmatic system that works. They may finally have room to breathe.
However, concerns over whether the Adsense Auto Ads will actually place ads on high performing sites are popping up. They’re certainly valid. According to a news release about the ads over on Marketing Dive,
“The success of AdSense Auto ads will be dependent on how effective the technology is at identifying the best advertising opportunities for marketers while balancing this with the need for a strong user experience. Automated processes like programmatic have run afoul of advertisers in the past year for eliminating so much control from media buying that brands' ads end up on low-quality or low-traffic sites.”
As publishers experiment with this automated process, we'll have a better grasp of how AI will play a role. For now, check out the blog post announcing the Adsense Auto Ads here and let us know what you think about them in the comments below. Will you sign up?
